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Injury Notes: Paul, Santos, Simmons, Isaac, Sasser

February 26th, 2024 at 1:57pm CST by Rory Maher

Future Hall-of-Famer Chris Paul is not listed on the Warriors‘ injury report for Tuesday’s contest vs. the Wizards, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic. That means the 38-year-old will be active for tomorrow’s game, which will be his first contest since January 5.

Paul has been sidelined for most of the past two months after fracturing his left hand, which required surgery. While he was mentioned in several rumors leading up to the trade deadline, the Warriors decided to keep him for the home stretch of the 2023/24 season.

In his first season with Golden State, the 11-time All-NBA point guard has averaged 8.9 PPG, 7.2 APG, 3.8 RPG and 1.1 SPG on .424/.361/.833 shooting in 32 games (27.6 MPG), mostly off the bench (11 starts).

Here are a few more injury notes from around the NBA:

  • The lone member of the Warriors who is on tomorrow’s injury report is rookie Gui Santos, who is out with right knee inflammation. According to Monte Poole of NBC Sports Bay Area (Twitter link), the Brazilian forward had an MRI, which showed no structural damage. Santos thinks he could return at some point next week, Poole adds.
  • Nets guard Ben Simmons injured his leg in Saturday’s loss to Minnesota, which saw him exit the game in the third quarter. However, the issue seems to be a minor one, as he’s questionable for Monday’s contest vs. Memphis with left leg soreness, writes Brian Lewis of The New York Post. Simmons has only played 14 games in 2023/24, mostly due to a nerve impingement in his lower back. It’s worth noting that he missed one game last month with a left knee injury, though it’s unclear if the two issues are related.
  • Another oft-injured player, Magic big man Jonathan Isaac, underwent an MRI on his left knee/leg, but it revealed “no significant injuries,” the team announced (via Twitter). The defensive stalwart is questionable for Tuesday’s contest vs. Brooklyn with a left knee strain. Isaac was limited to two minutes of action in Sunday’s loss to Atlanta due to the injury.
  • Pistons guard Marcus Sasser will be reevaluated in one week after sustaining a knee contusion, tweets Keith Langlois of Pistons.com. The former Houston Cougar has had an impressive rookie season for Detroit, averaging 7.7 PPG and 3.0 APG on .468/.424/.850 shooting in 50 games off the bench (16.3 MPG). Sasser was the 25th overall pick of last year’s draft.
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Klay Thompson Discusses Latest Fourth Quarter Benching

February 6th, 2024 at 11:26am CST by Luke Adams

Longtime Warriors star Klay Thompson sat out the final 7:19 of Golden State’s victory over Brooklyn on Monday, marking the second time in the past three games that he has been on the bench down the stretch in non-garbage-time minutes.

Thompson was part of the Warriors’ closing lineup on Saturday in Atlanta, but didn’t play the final 7:40 of Friday’s win over Memphis and was benched on Monday in favor of rookie Gui Santos, who had his best game as a pro in logging a career-high 18 minutes.

Asked after Monday’s win about his changing role and the fact that he’s no longer on a lock to be part of Golden State’s crunch-time lineup, Thompson said that winning is the most important thing, but admitted the adjustment hasn’t been easy, per Tim Bontemps of ESPN and Anthony Slater of The Athletic.

“Yeah, you kidding me?” Thompson said. “To go from, you know, one of the best players … it’s hard for anybody. I’ll be honest with you. It’s very hard.”

A five-time All-Star who led the NBA in three-pointers last season, Thompson is making 37.1% of his attempts from beyond the arc in 2023/24. That’s a solid rate for many players, but for Thompson, it represents a career low. Additionally, his 17.1 points per game are the fewest he has averaged since 2012/13.

“He’s fine,” head coach Steve Kerr said on Monday, according to Bontemps. “This is a season where he’s had a lot of ups and downs. It’s not easy for a guy who’s been so good and a Hall of Fame player to deal with the injuries and … it’s never easy for any player, getting older. (But) he’s mentally tough.”

Kerr added that, while there’s a “spotlight” on Thompson because of his career résumé, the story on Monday should be about how well role players like Santos, Moses Moody, and Lester Quinones performed off the bench to help the Warriors secure a road win. Thompson highlighted those performances by his teammates in explaining why he’s trying not to let his late-game benching bother him.

“I’ve accepted it,” Thompson said. “You can be mad. But I’m not going to be mad. I’m happy for these young guys. Yeah, we won. It’s hard to get wins in this league. … It’s all good. These guys played great. Gui played great. BP (Brandin Podziemski). Jonathan (Kuminga). At the end of the day, winning trumps all.”

Thompson is on an expiring contract and his name has popped up occasionally in the rumor mill leading up to Thursday’s trade deadline, but ESPN’s Brian Windhorst recently reported the Warriors have no interest in moving the veteran sharpshooter.

Slater expressed a belief last month that Golden State will ultimately work out a new contract with Thompson, who reportedly turned down a two-year extension offer from the team prior to the season.

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Warriors Notes: Curry, Wiggins, Thompson, Santos

November 13th, 2023 at 7:38pm CST by Dana Gauruder

While Stephen Curry has produced like a Most Valuable Player, his teammates haven’t been contributing at their usual levels, ESPN’s Kendra Andrews notes. Curry has delivered six 30-point games, but the Warriors have gotten just one 20-point performance from anyone else.

“No question, we need some scoring and some play-making elsewhere,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said.

Golden State has lost three straight and Curry expects some tweaks to be made.

“Everything is on the table for us for adjustments,” Curry said. “When you’ve lost three straight, you have to make adjustments.”

We have more on the Warriors:

  • Andrew Wiggins is one of those players who is looking to regain his offensive rhythm. Wiggins had just six points in 25 minutes against Minnesota and hasn’t scored more than 17 in any contest this season. He hasn’t been part of the closing unit, either. “It’s tough,” Wiggins told Marcus Thompson II of The Athletic. “I’ve just got to do what I can to give them a reason to keep me in. Whether it’s crashing the glass harder, defensively picking up. … If your shot is off, you’ve got to do other stuff to stay on the floor. Or someone else will come in.”
  • Along the same lines, Klay Thompson is searching for answers to his shooting slump, as Anthony Slater of The Athletic details. Thompson, who is headed to free agency unless he signs an extension, is averaging 16.1 points per game — his lowest output since his rookie year. He’s shooting a career low 34.7% on 3-point attempts. Thompson says there’s nothing wrong with him physically and he hasn’t lost any confidence. “If history shows us anything, it’s most definitely coming. What’s the point of panicking and pressing? I’ve been through this more than a decade,” he said. “It’s hard. Basketball is hard. I’m not going to lose faith or confidence. One thing I’ve proved is the resiliency within me. I’ll come back and have a great month.”
  • The Warriors had financial motives to add 2022 second-round pick Gui Santos on a three-year contract, as John Hollinger of The Athletic explains. Santos is considered a “draft rookie” and thus his minimum salary for luxury-tax purposes is just $1.03MM instead the $2.02MM for a veteran on a minimum contract. Factoring in the luxury and repeater taxes, the Warriors would have been out another $8MM if they had used the 14th roster spot on a veteran. Due to the non-guaranteed status of Santos’ contract, the Warriors could waive Santos just before the Jan. 10 guarantee date, go two weeks with a 13-player roster and then add another player prior to the trade deadline.
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Warriors Sign Gui Santos To Three-Year Deal

November 7th, 2023 at 11:39am CST by Rory Maher

NOVEMBER 7: The Warriors have officially signed Santos, per NBA.com’s transaction log. His contract is worth the minimum across all three seasons, including a prorated $1,029,483 salary for the rest of the 2023/24 season.

Only $75K of that money is guaranteed, according to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link), who adds that the second and third seasons are non-guaranteed. The deal includes a third-year team option.

NOVEMBER 6: The Warriors are finalizing a three-year contract with 2022 second-round pick Gui Santos, report Adrian Wojnarowski and Ramona Shelburne of ESPN (Twitter link).

Golden State will use the second-round pick exception to sign Santos, notes ESPN’s Bobby Marks (via Twitter). Due to their tax situation, the Warriors can only offer free agents a minimum-salary contract, which can only run for up to two years. Using the second-round exception will allow the Warriors to give Santos a three-year deal.

Santos, 21, was selected No. 55 overall last year. He signed a G League contract with Santa Cruz (Golden State’s affiliate) in 2022/23 and was essentially a draft-and-stash prospect because the Warriors still held his NBA rights.

A 6’8″ forward from Brazil, Santos averaged 12.7 PPG, 6.0 RPG and 2.2 APG on .500/.333/.813 shooting in 26 regular season games with Santa Cruz last season. He had a strong Summer League showing for the Warriors this offseason and also played for the Brazilian national team at the World Cup.

A report at the end of August indicated that Santos was unlikely to play for the Warriors this season, in part because they would have to buy out his contract from Brazilian club Minas. That deal reportedly expires at the end of ’23/24. Evidently there was a change of plans, however, and now Golden State will be giving the young wing a three-year standard contract.

The Warriors only have 13 players on standard contracts after waiving several training camp invitees before the ’23/24 season started. Instead of signing an external free agent, they’ll be adding Santos for their 14th spot, which they were required to fill within 14 days.

Golden State will still have a standard roster opening even after signing Santos, but it seems unlikely that the team will sign a player to fill that 15th spot until later in the season in order to maintain roster and financial flexibility.

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Pacific Notes: Harden, Plumlee, Davis, Santos

November 7th, 2023 at 8:02am CST by Luke Adams

James Harden‘s debut with the Clippers was spoiled by the Knicks, who pulled out a 111-97 win on Monday in New York. But Harden said after the game that he sees “unlimited possibilities” for what he, Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, and Russell Westbrook can do together, writes Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN.

Harden, who admitted that he felt “kind of weird out there” playing in his first game since the spring after not having a training camp with his new team, scored 17 points on 6-of-9 shooting and handed out six assists in 31 minutes of action.

As Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports writes, it looks like Harden will defer primary play-making duties to Westbrook to open games, then sub out early before returning to spearhead the team’s second unit. Despite Monday’s loss, head coach Tyronn Lue was pleased with what he saw from his club’s newest guard.

“He did a good job his first game in a while,” Leonard said, per Youngmisuk. “And it takes time to get his legs under him as far as conditioning. But he did a great job to me, got everybody involved running pick-and-roll very well.”

Here’s more from around the Pacific:

  • Clippers reserve center Mason Plumlee had to be carried off the court by a pair of team staffers following a collision with Julius Randle on Monday, Youngmisuk notes. The original diagnosis for Plumlee is a left knee sprain, but he’ll undergo further evaluation on Tuesday before the team officially announces a recovery timeline.
  • Lakers big man Anthony Davis dealt with spasms in his left hip on Monday and had to leave the team’s loss to Miami late in the first half. However, as Dave McMenamin of ESPN writes, Davis said he’s “very optimistic” that the hip issue won’t force him to miss additional time. “Everything’s going to be fine,” Davis said. “I’ll be ready to go for Wednesday, for sure.”
  • Although he’s getting a three-year deal and a spot on the Warriors‘ standard roster, forward Gui Santos is expected to continue spending much of his time in the G League with Santa Cruz, according to Kendra Andrews of ESPN, who says Santos will split his team between the NBA and NBAGL squads.
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International Notes: Sneed, Parker, Gobert, Nembhard, Prospects

September 9th, 2023 at 8:38am CST by Tristan Tucker

Former Hornets wing Xavier Sneed signed with Italian club Happy Casa Brandisi, the team announced in a release. This will be Sneed’s first professional experience in Europe.

Sneed, 25, finished last season with Charlotte on a two-way deal before being waived in early August. He appeared in just four games last year, putting up a total of 17 points during that time. Sneed also spent time with the Grizzlies and the Jazz in 2021/22. In total, he has 13 NBA appearances under his belt.

The Kansas State product has spent more time in the G League, mostly with Charlotte’s affiliate, the Greensboro Swarm. In 60 regular season career G League games split between Greensboro and Utah’s affiliate, the Salt Lake City Stars, Sneed averaged 12.2 points and 4.8 rebounds.

We have more International Notes:

  • France had a rough go in the 2023 FIBA World Cup, failing to reach the second round despite having NBA players like Rudy Gobert, Evan Fournier and Nicolas Batum. France gets an automatic bid for the 2024 Olympics due to being the host country, but was still looking to make an impact in the World Cup. Hall of Famer and French national team legend Tony Parker spoke on the loss, calling it “disappointing,” per Sarah Todd of Deseret News. Parker didn’t specifically call out any players but hinted that big names, including possibly Gobert, could be on the way out, Todd writes. “They are going to have big choices to make,” Parker said. “If you bring back big players like Joel Embiid and [Victor Wembanyama], it has to be complementary with the rest, because it could mean the departure of certain cornerstones, which can make headlines.“
  • RJ Nembhard, who spent the 2021/22 season with the Cavaliers, is signing with Belgium’s Filou Oostende, Eurohoops reports. Nembhard, 24, is being added to offset the loss of fellow former NBAer Patrick McCaw, whose visa issues are preventing him from joining Oostende, according to Eurohoops. Nembhard has 14 games of NBA experience, mostly while playing on a two-way deal with Cleveland, and totaled 15 points and 12 assists in those games.
  • The 2023 World Cup was a great opportunity for younger players across the world to get competitive, meaningful minutes early in their career. HoopsHype’s Alberto De Roa takes a look at some of the top prospects from the event, including NBA draftees Rokas Jokubaitis and Gui Santos. Both Jokubaitis and Santos, whose draft rights are held by the Knicks and Warriors, respectively, looked like future NBA rotation pieces, according to De Roa.
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Warriors Notes: Thompson, Santos, Staudt

August 31st, 2023 at 2:18pm CST by Rory Maher

Former NBA player Mychal Thompson says his son, Klay Thompson, is in great shape ahead of the 2023/24 season, he tells Mark Medina of Sportskeeda.

“He’ll be back hungrier than ever,” Mychal said of Klay. “He’s two years removed from his serious injuries. He’s been working out like crazy. He looks good, lean and ready to go. I expect him to be at a high All-Star level again. It’s possible. But the West is so loaded with guards. You’re going to have to be hooping out of your mind because all of these guards in the West could make the All-Star team.”

The longtime Warriors guard is entering the final year of his contract, which will pay him $43.2MM this season. Will that be a distraction for Klay?

“He’s not worried about that,” Mychal Thompson told Medina. “He knows he has a job to do with coming into camp in the best shape and having a great year. Everything else will take care of itself.”

The elder Thompson also talked to Medina about Klay’s future with the Warriors, the possibility of his son representing either Team USA or the Bahamas ahead of next year’s Olympics, and other topics. The interview is worth checking out in full if you’re a Golden State fan.

Here’s more on the Warriors:

  • Brazilian forward Gui Santos, who is currently competing at the 2023 World Cup, was the No. 55 overall pick last year by the Warriors. He wound up signing an NBA G League contract in 2022/23 and spent his first season in the U.S. playing for the team’s affiliate, the Santa Cruz Warriors. The 21-year-old added 15 pounds of muscle in the offseason and had a strong Summer League showing, but he’s expected to once again play for Santa Cruz in ’23/24, reports Dalton Johnson of NBC Sports Bay Area.
  • According to Johnson, Santos is currently ineligible for a two-way deal with Golden State because he’s still under contract with Brazilian team Minas. The Warriors could buy out his current deal — which ends after ’23/24 — in order to give him a standard contract, but that isn’t expected to occur, Johnson writes. In other words, Santos likely won’t be making his NBA debut until at least ’24/25.
  • The Warriors are hiring Wizards scout Jason Staudt to join their front office, league sources tell veteran reporter Marc Stein (Twitter link). Staudt has worked in various roles with several NBA organizations, including the Magic, Blazers, Rockets and Suns.
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NBA G League Announces 24 Players For Next Up Game

February 7th, 2023 at 1:36pm CST by Luke Adams

The NBA G League announced today that G League Ignite guard Scoot Henderson and Timberwolves/Iowa Wolves forward Luka Garza have been named team captains for the NBAGL Next Up Game, which will take place in Salt Lake City during All-Star weekend.

While the exhibition match isn’t technically being called a G League All-Star Game, that’s essentially what it is. The 24-player pool was selected by a fan vote and by the league itself.

Henderson averaged 21.2 PPG, 6.0 APG, and 4.3 RPG in six Showcase Cup games (28.5 MPG) before missing time with an injury. The guard, widely projected to be the No. 2 pick in this year’s draft, has registered 17.7 PPG, 5.7 APG, and 4.5 RPG in 11 regular season games (29.8 MPG) since returning.

Garza, meanwhile, has been dominant at the G League level while playing for the Timberwolves on a two-way contract. He averaged 29.8 PPG, 9.2 RPG, and 3.2 APG on .628/.500/.794 shooting in nine Showcase Cup games (34.4 MPG) and has been boosted those averages in two regular season games (32.5 PPG, 12.0 RPG, 5.0 APG) for the Iowa Wolves.

Here’s the full list of players who will take part in the G League Next Up Game:

(* Players marked with an asterisk are on two-way contracts with NBA teams.)

As is the case with the NBA All-Star Game, the team captains – in this case, Henderson and Garza – will select their 12-man squads in a draft. The draft for the G League Next Up Game will take place on February 14.

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Warriors Notes: Poole, Kuminga, Rotation, Thompson, Santos

November 5th, 2022 at 4:28pm CST by Rory Maher

The Warriors need Jordan Poole to play better after a “wildly inconsistent” start to the 2022/23 campaign, writes Monte Poole of NBC Sports Bay Area. As Monte Poole notes, Jordan has recorded more turnovers (14) than assists (13) over the past three games during Golden State’s current five-game losing streak.

“He’s trying too hard,” head coach Steve Kerr said. “Jordan is trying too hard to create every play. He’s at his best when there’s a flow to the game, he’s playing on and off the ball, getting some catch-and-shoot opportunities.”

According to Monte Poole, Jordan Poole is the key to fixing the second unit’s struggles, because he’s the group’s primary ball-handler and scorer.

Here’s more on the defending champions:

  • After losing to the Pelicans Friday night, the Warriors now sit with a 3-7 record. They’re the first defending champion to start 0-6 on the road in NBA history, per ESPN’s Kendra Andrews. Second-year forward Jonathan Kuminga played a career-high 38 minutes in the loss, and Kerr acknowledged his performance after the game. “It was apparent who really played tonight. [Kuminga] played really well,” Kerr said. “He’s earned some minutes … He showed tonight that he’s ready to step into the rotation and contribute. But that has to be every night … be able to play through the tough nights when maybe the minutes aren’t there.”
  • As Andrews relays in the same article, Kerr also marked Anthony Lamb, Ty Jerome and Moses Moody as noteworthy performers who could be in line for more rotation minutes. Lamb and Jerome are both on two-way contracts, while Moody was the 14th pick of last year’s draft.
  • On October 30, Kerr stated that Klay Thompson would be held out of one end of back-to-backs as he works on his conditioning, but it wouldn’t be for the full season like in ’21/22. However, apparently he’s changed his mind about that. “Klay may not play in a back-to-back all year. He didn’t last year because of two straight season-ending injuries,” Kerr said, per Andrews (Twitter link).
  • Gui Santos, a second-round pick in June’s draft (55th overall), is on the Santa Cruz Warriors’ roster to start the G League season, which means he signed an NBAGL contract. It’s essentially as though he’s a draft-and-stash prospect because the Warriors still hold his NBA rights, but having him play in the G league allows the Warriors to get a closer look at — and have a more hands-on approach to — the Brazilian forward’s development.
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Pacific Notes: Murray, Vezenkov, Santos, Leonard

July 3rd, 2022 at 12:30pm CST by Arthur Hill

Kings first-round pick Keegan Murray put on a show Saturday in the California Classic Summer League, writes Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee. The No. 4 selection posted 26 points and eight rebounds in 28 minutes and drew a vocal crowd reaction with his array of moves.

“My goal going in was, obviously, get the win first,” Murray said. “I knew that was a big thing for me, and just play my game. Don’t do anything out of the ordinary. Don’t do anything I was uncomfortable doing. Just stick to what I do best, and that’s knock down shots and get rebounds, so I just stuck to it.”

Murray said he wasn’t nervous heading into his first game as a professional and he was encouraged after seeing his first shot fall. He wound up shooting 10 of 14 from the field, including 4 of 5 from three-point range, and impressed his coaches and teammates with his efficiency.

“Every time, it seems like he does the right thing,” Summer League coach Jordi Fernandez said. “He doesn’t force it. He makes it look simple, and, as you guys know, when you watch a professional athlete that, whatever he does looks simple, that is usually a really good professional athlete. Overall, I think the kid is very special. What we saw in college, I’m seeing it right now, and if I have to — well, I cannot bet because this is the NBA, but if I could, I’m going to say that he’s going to be a very, very, very good NBA player.”

There’s more from the Pacific Division:

  • Sasha Vezenkov, whose draft rights were acquired last month in a trade with Cleveland, will meet with the Kings during the Las Vegas Summer League to discuss his future, according to Stavros Barbarousis of Eurohoops. The 26-year-old forward is under contract with Olympiacos, but he has NBA opt-outs this summer and in 2023.
  • Gui Santos, a second-round pick by the Warriors, also had an impressive Summer League debut, notes Monte Poole of NBC Sports Bay Area. The 21-year-old swingman out of Brazil had 23 points, six rebounds and three steals. “Before the game, I was nervous because it’s a different game here,” Santos said. “I’m playing outside of my country and my family is not here. But when I started to play, I gained confidence. Catching the ball and making the plays, I started to feel better.” Golden State will likely keep Santos overseas for another year or two, but that decision hasn’t been finalized.
  • Clippers owner Steve Ballmer believes “the sky is the limit” for his team, especially if Kawhi Leonard can make a full comeback from the torn right ACL that prevented him from playing this season, per Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN.
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